finally

"B-b-b-but I NEED a private room, or else I'll have a major panic attack...", we were thusly warned.

Yes, we survived the last and most busy day of the semester yesterday. Final day of finals. 

So, I work at a testing center located on a college campus, but only about half of the tests we give are for the students. The others are "professional" tests dealing with professional licenses and certifications. They range anywhere from paramedics to school teachers to insurance agents to cybersecurity pros and everything in between. Seriously, I never knew there were SO many licenses and certifications. 

But on the final day of finals each semester, we shut everything down except for student tests. Only students with special accommodations - granted through Disability Services - come and test with us. They must demonstrate good reason for not taking tests in the class with everyone else. It seems like the list of accommodations grows each semester. 

So yesterday was a high anxiety day. It went pretty smoothly, all things considered. We managed to provide a private room to avoid the aforementioned panic attacker, even though they hadn't made the proper reservation. Better to just find a way.

The most common accommodation is extra time - either time and a half or double. I think that's mostly granted for dyslexia, but it's not our biz to know why a student gets a certain accommodation, we just know the what. 

But some students just straight up tell us what's up. There is an accommodation that says nothing more than "alternative test location" that addresses this meme:

One poor fellow told me this is exactly what happens to him while testing with the class. God forbid someone turn in their exam and leave with time remaining.

Anxiety is certainly an underlying factor with most students who test with us. Without the accommodation(s), they are unlikely to stay in school or even enroll in the first place.

I know a few of these students from my tutoring in the math center. I feel for them with their struggles as they show up for tests with that deer-in-the-headlights look. We sometimes question how they will do once they're out in the non-accommodating working world with their fresh degrees.

On the other hand, we suspect that a small handful of them played it up for the counselors. Sold them a line to get special treatment for testing, similar to what happened with some people involved in the Varsity Blues scandal.

Maybe they'll eventually enter politics and become rising stars.